After Confessing To My Childhood Friend - Chapter 33
Chapter 33: Christmas
◎ Hot Spring Resort ◎
Winter had blanketed Yonghuai City in a cold, gray mist. The sunlight was never bright enough, offering nothing more than a dim glow with no warmth.
On the roadside, the Bauhinia trees had shed many of their leaves. Their canopies still remained green, and the dense foliage reflected the morning light like they were dusted with gold powder—shimmering and radiant.
Chen Mengyin exhaled visible breath into the chilly air and took a bite of the meat bun her mom had steamed that morning. The thin skin and juicy filling instantly satisfied her, calming her cranky winter mood.
“There’s nothing better in winter than a steaming hot meat bun,” she said. Xie Zhirou nodded in agreement with her cheeks stuffed full. “So good.”
“It’s a pity all the flowers are gone,” Chen Mengyin said, stepping on the fallen leaves that crunched beneath her shoes.
This year, the Bauhinia had bloomed beautifully—clusters of pinkish-white flowers competing in full glory across the treetops. Chen Mengyin had dragged Xie Zhirou to Linjiang Road on a sunny weekend to take lots of photos. In the end, she picked three or four of her favorites, printed them, and placed them in her large photo album at home.
That album held photos from her entire childhood. Since she was five, it started to include Xie Zhirou too, turning into a shared collection of their memories.
Xie Zhirou wiped the oil from her fingers and said, “They’ll bloom again next year.”
Next year—they would still be here.
Chen Mengyin had only been making an offhand comment, but hearing it framed like that made her feel warm. The flowers might be gone, but next year, they’d bloom again. They’d be here to see them.
“I wish it would snow this year,” Chen Mengyin fantasized.
“If it keeps getting colder before Christmas, maybe it will,” Xie Zhirou said.
“Speaking of which, Christmas falls on a weekend, right? Want to go soak in a hot spring?” Chen Mengyin mentally flipped through her calendar—Christmas was next Saturday.
“Sure,” Xie Zhirou replied.
Chen Mengyin beamed, practically skipping into school.
This week was even colder than the last. The classroom heaters were on full blast. As Chen Mengyin opened the classroom door, she was hit with a wave of dry heat that made her think of her past nosebleeds. Her nose twinged just at the thought.
She covered her nose and handed out some of her extra buns to Ye Siying, who dramatically thanked her. Chen Mengyin waved it off and returned to her seat, sniffing.
Xie Zhirou, sitting beside her, pulled out a thermos from her bag—one whose scent alone made Chen Mengyin shrink in dread. She poured a cup of herbal tea.
“Drink this,” Xie Zhirou ordered.
Chen Mengyin pulled a face. She really didn’t want to drink another drop of that stuff.
“Do I have to?” she pleaded, big eyes blinking, trying to look pitiful and sweet-talk her way out of it.
“You don’t want to?” Xie Zhirou smiled gently, dimples showing—dimples Chen Mengyin had always adored. She nodded, eyes pleading for mercy.
“Nope.” Xie Zhirou denied her coldly. “Drink it.”
“Ugh,” Chen Mengyin whined.
Whining didn’t work. Even though it was bitter and sour, she drank it all under Xie Zhirou’s watchful eye, her face scrunched like a prune.
Xie Zhirou, prepared, unwrapped a milk candy and popped it into her mouth to soothe her.
The sweet, creamy taste finally washed away the bitter aftertaste. As her face relaxed, Chen Mengyin chewed on the candy and pulled out her textbook to memorize the dizzying 26 English letters.
During the break, class rep Zhu Danxue came over and asked if they had plans for Christmas. She was organizing a group activity for those without plans.
“Hehe, Zhirou and I are busy that day. You guys have fun,” Chen Mengyin declined.
Zhu Danxue glanced between them. Seeing their hands linked after class, she suddenly understood, “Oh, you two are going on a date!”
Chen Mengyin secretly thrilled at the word “date,” grinned and said, “Yep, so we won’t be joining.”
Zhu Danxue didn’t push it. She just said they were welcome to join last-minute if they changed their minds.
After she left, Chen Mengyin noticed Xie Zhirou was quietly staring at her.
“Huh? Why are you staring? Don’t tell me… you want to join them instead?” she asked nervously.
“Nope,” Xie Zhirou replied instantly.
Chen Mengyin let out a breath of relief.
Xie Zhirou found her nervous expression amusing. She didn’t mention how cute Chen Mengyin had looked saying “we’re going on a date,” but instead mischievously asked, “What if I did want to go?”
The joy drained from Chen Mengyin’s face. She looked dejected but didn’t get angry—just softly said, “If you want to go, I’ll go tell the class rep.”
She even started to get up before Xie Zhirou pulled her back down.
“Don’t go,” Xie Zhirou said.
“Huh?” Chen Mengyin looked confused, still stuck in her sadness.
“I was teasing,” Xie Zhirou explained.
“You were teasing?” Chen Mengyin looked dazed for a moment before realizing she’d been played.
She crossed her arms, pouting, “Unbelievable! You made me all sad and didn’t even comfort me!”
When Xie Zhirou reached for her hand, she dodged. “Nope, holding hands won’t fix this!”
She turned her head away dramatically, hoping Xie Zhirou would come up with another way to coax her. But no movement came. Chen Mengyin peeked sideways to see her looking at her with that affectionate expression adults give pouting children.
That made her even more annoyed. Was she being treated like a kid?
Xie Zhirou leaned in and whispered something softly in her ear.
“Better now?” she asked after sitting back.
Chen Mengyin’s face turned bright red like a cherry tomato, her eyes sparkled, and she nodded shyly.
“You agreed, no backing out!” she warned before class.
“Pinky promise?” Xie Zhirou held out her pinky.
“Pinky promise!” Chen Mengyin hooked hers, “Anyone who breaks it is a puppy.”
“Right—anyone who breaks it is a puppy.” They locked their thumbs, sealing their promise.
With Xie Zhirou’s promise, Chen Mengyin became super motivated. Math or English—it didn’t matter. She was on fire, lifting the entire class’s spirit with her enthusiasm. The math and English teachers were moved to tears, rejuvenated like they were fresh out of college again.
“Ahhh, can time go faster?” Chen Mengyin checked her phone constantly, wishing it were already Christmas and they were in hot springs, uniforms off, relaxing together.
But no matter how often she checked, time trudged forward, unaffected by her urgency.
Ye Siying passed by, saw her dazed, and mocked her for acting like a lovesick fool. “It’s just Christmas. What are you so desperate for?”
“You don’t get it,” Chen Mengyin said solemnly.
“Don’t get it? What, it’s just a date,” Ye Siying scoffed.
“You don’t get it,” Chen Mengyin repeated with a mysterious look.
Ye Siying was baffled and asked Xie Zhirou, “What’s up with her? Is she possessed? Should we get her head checked?” She tapped her temple.
Xie Zhirou laughed and said it was nothing. She’d be fine after a while.
“Alright, but keep an eye on her. Don’t let this get out of hand before exams.” Ye Siying said worriedly, then went back to her seat.
It wasn’t until her seatmate asked what was wrong that she realized—oh no! The way Chen Mengyin looked at her… like she was just some clueless single dog! No wonder she said “you don’t get it.” She really didn’t get it!
Jiang Yingxia, her deskmate, looked at her changing expressions and asked if she felt sick, suggesting a trip to the nurse.
Ye Siying, feeling gross, waved her off. “No, I just thought of something that made me nauseous.”
Seeing nothing else odd, Jiang Yingxia let it go, just told her to drink more water.
Ye Siying nodded and downed a cup of warm water, trying not to dwell on that annoying phrase: “You don’t get it.”
Time passed slowly for Chen Mengyin, until finally—Christmas Day.
The sky was gloomy, the temperature freezing. Chen Mengyin layered up with an extra sweater—she wasn’t about to let a cold ruin the day she’d waited so long for.
“Mom, I’m heading out. I won’t disturb you and Comrade Chen Lin’s holiday!” she called out from the doorway, wrapping her scarf tight.
Li Ran helped zip her coat up and said, “Be safe. Take care of Zhirou, okay?”
“Yeah, yeah, I got it. Merry Christmas, Mom!” Chen Mengyin hugged her and waved goodbye.
The car to the hot spring resort had been arranged by Tang Jingxue, who, upon hearing her daughter was going with Chen Mengyin, quickly booked a room, meals, and had a driver pick them up.
Chen Mengyin had called to thank her, chatting for a while before Tang Jingxue had to go.
The car waited at the villa gate early that morning. An hour later, they arrived. The hotel staff, prepped by Tang Jingxue, helped with luggage and led them to their room.
“Hot springs, here I come!” Chen Mengyin exclaimed excitedly.